Havana Club Rum

Havana Club is a brand of rum, made in Santa Cruz del Norte, Cuba. The brand was established by José Arechabala in 1878. After the Cuban Revolution of 1959, the distillery and company was expropriated by the Cuban government; subsequently, the Arechabala family escaped to Spain, then emigrated to the United States. Since 1993 it has been produced by Havana Club International, a 50:50 joint venture between Pernod Ricard and the Cuban government.

The Havana Club brand is sold outside of Cuba in conjunction with the Pernod Ricard drinks giant. Havana Club is not sold in the United States, however, due to an embargo on Cuban products. Bacardi has purchased the rights and original recipe from the originators (the Arechabala family, who fled Cuba with the recipe) of Havana Club Rum, and will begin to produce it for distribution in the U.S. This new Bacardi version utilizes the original (Pre-1960) recipe, and is a different version than what the Cuban Government currently produces[citation needed]. The Bacardi product, which is made in Puerto Rico, is currently the subject of trademark violation litigation by Pernod Ricard.